Method of attaching a hanger



May 2l, 1940. R. F. MCMAHAN METHOD OF ATTACHING A HANGER Filed arch 26, 1936 Patented May 21, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to malleable hangers and a method for securing Same to wooden members such as a chair rung to legs; table legs to rails or bars, et cetera.

The main objects are to add stability to furniture structures and reduce the cost of the product in terms of accepted practice which employs glue, screws, nails, rivets, pegs or mortise and tenon joints.

'Other objects. and advantages of the method, structure and combinations are hereinafter set forth in detail and will be apparent to persons skilled in the art to which this invention relates and to their advantages in-so-far as they are patentably novel, l will claim the same as hereinafter set forth.

Figure 1 is a vertical elevation of a flat rung 'or bar embraced by my hanger, which is secured to a section of a chair leg by rivets.

Figure 2 is a vertical end view of Fig. 1 along line 2, '2.

Figure 3 is a vertical end View of Fig. 1.

Figure 4 is a plan view of `a modification of my hanger permanently uniting three rectangular bars without the use of rivets, screws, et cetera. The dotted lines of this figure are to represent an alternate disposition of the adjacent shank and bar.

Figure 5 is a sectional `view of Fig. 4 along 5, .5, shown in full lines together with a dash-dot outline of a forming tool employed to secure a malleable hanger to `wooden members.

Figure 6 is a sectional View of the end of a hanger with the arms before final forming for securing to a rung, leg bar or other wooden object, which is also shown in section and partially embraced.

Figure '7 is a sectional View of the hanger and A rung of Fig. 6 together with a sectional View of the forming tool during an early stage of shaping the arms of the hanger preparatory to forcing the ends of the arms into the rung, which is shown in Fig. 5 at the completed stage.

Figure 8 is a further stage of Fig. '7; 'the 'sections of Figs. 2 and 5 are provided to show the ends of the arms imbedded deep in the wood which has been deformed by the last stages of the forming process.

Figures 9 and 10 are fragments of Figures 7 and 8, respectively, to show the behavior of ends I'I of arms Il when soft material is being formed.

Numeral I indicates a wooden rung or bar of rectangular cross section secured to hanger i I, which in turn is secured to a major body I2 such as the leg of a chair by means of rivets I3,

which are shown passing through apertures in the hanger and the leg. The projection `shank I4 of the hanger is fashioned with duplicate arms when the latter is lodged within the former as "i shown in Fig. 6. The face of the Shanks from which these arms project is sometimes referred to hereinafter as the basa This projection is provided forv the purpose of furnishing material which can be altered at this stage of the method of assembly by curling both projections inwardly, the rst stage of which is shown by Figure 7. 'To accomplish this a very special forming tool IB iis employed. It will -benoted that the projecting ends II of arms I can lbe forced to travel inwardly by `the arcuate contours I8 ofthe forming tool. It will be understoodthat the shank I I of hanger IfI is placed `on a rigid member or anvil I9I of a power press and that the forming tool i6 is carried by the ram or gate of same and that the two members `of the press are brought together to exert a pressing action to bring about the assembling method which is being described herein.

The depending arms IGI of forming tool I6 have their inner faces 162 'arranged Vto guide and hold 'arms I5 `in `substantially parallel relation so that the edges of ends I1 will engage contours I8 for convexly forming the 'said ends las shown in Figs. 9 and 110. It Should be noted that feat the main objective of completely embracing a rung so as to leave it with the definite and eiiective permanent outwardly exerted force necessary for producing a dependable rigid structure.

As the forming tool I6 advances on its downward stroke, the ends I'I take up the position as shown in Figure 8 where -projections I9 are substantially in register with the ends II of the shank. It will now be apparent that as the squeegee action advances, the ends will be forced to penetrate the top surface of bar I0 as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 8. A still further and the nal stage of the travel for the forming tool I6 is shown in Fig. 5, which also shows the flnal position to which these ends have been forced, and that the ends I 'I have been caused to describe an arcuate path, indicated by the associated dotted lines, as they pierced the top surface of bar Il] and that bar IIJ has been `locally compressed and left in tension so that pressure resulting from the relatively high elasticity of the wood is being exerted directly against the embracing arms I5, especially the ends Il.

It has been found in practice that ends Il of arms I behave in response to the contours I8 of the forming tool, as the latter` advances or progresses on its downward travel, substantially as shown in Figures 8 and 9 of the drawing when the sheet steel that is being fabricated is slightly hard. When a full soft material is used, the said ends start a curling action to more closely conform to said contours at the beginning of the deflection, practically as shown inY Fig. 9, this results in forming, directing and forcing the protruding end Il directly into the surface to cut the wood rather than forcing it in from the side edge of the end as shown in Fig. 8. The preferred procedure being to curl the metal so as to cut the wood as it enters and travels to a xed position. In other words the projecting portions of arms I5 have been caused to conform to said contours, as shown in Fig. l0, at the time the edges of ends I'I break through ,the top surface of bar I.

A modified application of the principles adverted to herein, has been applied to a similar structure wherein only one arm has been curled to effect a permanent engagement between the bracket and a wooden bar.

This procedure is an application wherein the bar is relatively narrow and the projecting end I'I of arm I5 is much longer and the contour I8 being on a larger'arc.

Other modifications and application of the principles disclosed herein are practicable, without departing from the .spirit of my invention, therefore, I wish to be limited only by the attached claims.

I claim:

1. The method of securing a sheet metal stamping to a rectangular wooden bar, comprising, forming a section of the sheet metal stamping into channel shape with legs longer than the thickness of the wooden bar and a base portion substantially equal in width to that of the bar; placing the wooden bar longitudinally in the bottom of the said channel; forcing the inner face of each leg into face contacting relation with the corresponding side faces of the bar; and then, while retaining the said inner faces in face contacting relation with the said side faces of the bar, curling each free end one toward the other and pressing each free end into the outer face of the said bar longitudinally along the correspending edges of the outer face thereof until the portions of the said bar adjacent the side faces thereof are compressed between the corresponding curled free ends and base portion of the said channel.

2. The method of attaching a wooden bar to a metal member comprising positioning said bar between relatively spaced arms of said metal member, with said arms in abutting relation with said bar, said arms being of a greater length than the thickness of said bar, bending the extended portions of said arms inwardly and downwardly over a surface of the bar at the plane of said surface, simultaneously bending the extremity of each of said arms downwardly and inwardly with respect to its arm and into approximately arch-shape while said extremity is spaced from said surface, continuing both of said bending movements until the free edges of said extremities Contact with and are forced into said surface during the archforming operation, and retaining said portions in abutting relation with said bar during said bending operations.

3. The method of attaching a wooden member to a metal member, comprising inserting the wooden member between relatively spaced portions of said metal member, with said spaced p0rtions in abutting relation with said wooden member, at least one of said portions being of a length to project beyond the plane of a surface of said wooden member, bending said projecting portion downwardly and inwardly toward said sui-,

face, and during said bending movements also bending the extremity of said projecting portion into arched shape as said extremity approaches said surface during the first mentioned bending movement, during both of said bending actionsl p moving said arched extremity approximately longitudinally through the path of its arched shape until the free edge of said extremity penetrates said surface, and preventing lateral separation of said arms during the aforesaid bending movel0 ments.

ROY F. MCMAHAN. 

